Recent Work & Highlights

2020

Part of the risk communication team at WHO Headquarters in Geneva for the opening weeks of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Worked on “mythbusters” to counter mis-information and rumours then developing guidance for and engaging with travel & tourism sector and organisers of large sporting events. Developed and negotiated clearance of advice on Getting your Workplace Ready for COVID-19 (February and early March)

Since 9 March, communication lead at WHO Country Office in Lao PDR. Supporting Ministry of Health in its risk communication on COVID-19 as well as working with UN Partners and NGOs on COVID-19 risk communication.

Communication Consultant working for WHO Country Office Lao PDR (https://www.who.int/laos) – providing risk communication support and capacity building to Ministry of Health as well as corporate & programme communication to WHO Country Office, Vientiane, Lao PDR June 2019 – 1 January 2020

2018

Development of advocacy strategy and materials to encourage investment in health emergency “core capacities” in 15 countries in WHO European Region. This project involved interviewing WHO Representatives and Technical Officers in these countries as well as liaising with Regional Office for Europe.

Continued risk communication consultancy work for WHO Health Emergencies Programme, Geneva (January onwards)

2017

Part of facilitation team for WHO/Africa Regional Workshop on Risk Communication during Health Emergencies, Cotonou, Benin, November (read news article )

Resource person / facilitator at inaugural pre-deployment training for newly created WHO Network for Social Science Interventions (SocialNet), October 2017

Co-facilitated (with Dr Ljubica Latinovic) a two day national workshop for St Lucia and the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) on risk communication during pandemics and other health emergencies. At the end of the workshop participants joined a half-day crisis simulation exercise to test St Lucia’s All Hazards Emergency Risk Communiction Guidelines. St Lucia, October 2017

Project managed and co-facilitated (with Melinda Frost) High-level Meeting on Emergency Risk Communication for Korean Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (KCDC) and Asia Europe Foundation (ASEF), Seoul 14-15 June 2017. This involved design and delivery of an emergency simulation exercise. I also wrote and managed the approval of the Meeting Report after the workshop. (read the Meeting Report)

2016

Project manager, co-facilitator (with John Rainford and Christine “Tiff” Cool) and rapporteur for the Joint ECDC and ASEF workshop How can we be better prepared for the next global health threat?: Planning and Implementing Emergency Risk Communication, Stockholm, Sweden, 2016. This interactive meeting included a crisis simulation exercise.
Read the meeting report.

Pre-2016

Part of start-up team for European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) in 2005. Worked with Founding Director, Zsuzanna Jakab, to rapidly established high profile for this new EU Agency. Started up Public Communication and Media function, including development of Emergency Risk Communication plans and systems, while simultaneously managing ECDC’s communication response to “bird flu” emergency.

Member of several expert working groups for World Health Organization (WHO): notably the International Health Regulation Risk Communication Working Group 2008-2010 which reviewed evidence on best practice and produced operational definition of “risk communication”.

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